PAX South Keynote Speaker And Other Events Revealed

PAX South is one of the smaller shows put on by the crew at Penny Arcade, but it's got a special charm all its own. The 2017 edition will see some first-time events come to the show along with a keynote speaker who is sure to entertain. Today it was announced that Wizards of the Coast's Principal Story Designer Christopher Perkins will be the Keynote Speaker when PAX South kicks off later this month. And since he'll be in town, they're bringing the annual Acquisitions Inc. live Dungeons and Dragons game to the event for the first time.

Chris Perkins has been a mainstay of the Penny Arcade Expo shows in Seattle and Boston, but this will be his first time taking the main stage at PAX South in San Antonio, Texas. Perkins joined Wizards of the Coast as the editor of Dungeon magazine before working his way up the ranks to become the lead story designer. As one who makes a living not just telling stories, but inventing them, a keynote presentation by Chris Perkins seems destined to be entertaining. Perkins follows several gaming industry luminaries who have been given the keynote position before, including Ron Gilbert, Amy Hennig, Ken Levine, and Cliff Bleszinski.

Chris Perkins has been the official dungeon master for the Penny Arcade team since they began their Acquisitions Incorporated series in 2008. Begun as a podcast, the game has now been played in front of a live audience at the numerous PAX events. This year will be the first time that the game has been played live at PAX South. Penny Arcade members Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, along with fellow comic creator Scott Kurtz made up the core party. Author Patrick Rothfuss will also be joining them, as he has for the last couple of years. A special guest is also being teased for the game.

While the major PAX events on the east and west coast focus on showing off some of the biggest titles in gaming, PAX South has always been a much smaller show, dedicated to tabletop games and the indie game scene as much as anything. It's possible that may be starting to change. While the full list of available game demos in the Expo Hall has not been released, we know that Nintendo will be there with their new console, the Nintendo Switch, which will be one of the first opportunities for the public to get their hands on it. This makes PAX South a major destination for the serious video game fan for possibly the first time.

While 3-day passes for PAX South have sold out, individual day passes for the event are still available for all three days, so you can still attend for the entire weekend, it will just cost you a bit more to do it. PAX South will be at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas January 27-29 2017.